California obstetrician sued over sex misconduct claims

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Three women have sued a Los Angeles-area hospital and a prominent obstetrician, alleging the doctor assaulted and harassed them during treatment.

The lawsuit filed Wednesday claims Pasadena’s Huntington Memorial Hospital had received numerous complaints about Dr. Patrick Sutton’s behavior dating back 20 years.

The plaintiffs, who are not named, allege Sutton used his position of authority and trust to sexually abuse them and potentially thousands of other women.

City News Service says Sutton could not be reached for comment. Huntington Hospital says it takes seriously all issues of patient safety, but won’t comment on litigation.

Huntington announced last week that the 64-year-old doctor no longer had a leadership role at the hospital and will have a chaperone when treating women in the maternity ward.